Protecting the Qantas Sale From Leaks, Short-Selling

AUTHOR(S)

Hahn, Avital Louna

PUB. DATE

September 2004

SOURCE

Investment Dealers' Digest;9/13/2004, Vol. 70 Issue 35, p7

SOURCE TYPE

Trade Publication

DOC. TYPE

Article

ABSTRACT

This article focuses on strategy adopted by the British Airways Plc. to protect its deal from the leaks and short selling that often plague large block trades. When British Airways Plc. sold its 18% stake in Qantas Airways Ltd. in Australia, a rarely used strategy was adopted. The company kept the names of both airlines secret from investment banks vying for the deal until the very last minute. Once Citigroup was chosen as an underwriter, British Air also arranged for a trading halt on Qantas shares. Protecting the value of Qantas stock was particularly important because the shares already traded in the single low digits. Short selling could hove easily eroded the value to the point that a sale would no longer make sense.

ACCESSION #

14419972

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